by Kaylea Cross
Over the next hour they reviewed what they’d seen down at the harbor, using a satellite map on Chloe’s laptop. La Liberté was due to arrive in port around sixteen-hundred-hours tomorrow. Once the ship was located, he and Chloe would find a spot to hide and watch on the south side of it, while Ty and Megan took the north.
Fleur would board the ship without a wire or earpiece, determine whether the women were on board, then complete the transaction with the electronic fund transfer, signal them, then leave. From there, Chloe and Megan would take over, with him and Ty providing backup.
There was more at stake here than Fleur’s and the captive women’s safety. If anything went wrong and Heath had to fire his weapon on this unsanctioned op, his security clearance was up in smoke, possibly along with his career. But he was too invested to walk away now, and he would never turn his back when Ty, Chloe and the others might be in danger. He was going to do everything he could to keep them safe.
“Okay, so…we’re good?” Megan asked as they wrapped up, looking at each of them gathered around the laptop.
Chloe was chewing away on her gum, still studying the map on screen.
“Chloe.”
Her gaze shot to Megan, and she straightened. “We’re good.” But the lingering unease in her eyes proved she still had some major reservations about Fleur’s role in this. Hell, they all did.
With a reassuring smile, Megan pulled her into a hug. “It’s going to be fine. By this time tomorrow, all those women will be free and Fleur will be on her way home to Paris.”
“Yeah, can’t wait.” Chloe squeezed her and let go. “See you guys in the morning.”
Heath let them out and locked the door. When he turned around, Chloe was gone. Her laptop was still on the desk, but the door between their rooms was shut.
Annoyed at himself for being disappointed, he grabbed the sandwich from the bar fridge and wolfed it down. He’d just jammed the last bite into his mouth when the connecting door opened and Chloe walked through it wearing a tight pair of sleep shorts that barely covered her ass, and a T-shirt snug enough to show him she wasn’t wearing a bra. It bore a logo mimicking AC/DC’s, but read AD/HD: Highway to—Squirrel! instead.
Sweet Jesus.
He had to swallow twice to force the sandwich down his throat as she walked back to the desk and studied the map, not paying him any attention. “Something else on your mind?” he asked.
“Just…everything,” she said with a frown, scanning the area where the ship was supposed to dock.
Then she straightened and wrapped her arms around herself, framing her pert breasts. “It should be me on board that boat tomorrow. If something goes wrong, I could handle it. Fleur…” She shook her head.
Heath crossed to the table, turned a ladder-back chair around and straddled it, resting his forearms across the top. He was a protector and healer by nature, wanted to help ease her anxiety about this. “Want to go over everything again, see if we missed something?” He didn’t think they had, but it might make her feel better.
She flashed him a half-smile and closed the laptop. “No. We’ve done everything we can for now.” She straightened and stretched her arms over her head, making her breasts push against the material of her shirt for a second until she dropped her arms again. “It’s late. Guess I’ll turn in.”
He couldn’t tell if she’d done it to tempt him or not, and it was driving him crazy. If she was worried and still thinking about tomorrow, he would keep his hands to himself. “You can sleep after drinking that?” He nodded at the empty can.
“No, but you can. You have to be tired.”
Not anymore, with her so close and wearing next to nothing. “I’m fine. But I could help you get to sleep.”
She arched an eyebrow at his offer, amusement lurking in her gaze. “You think so?”
He lifted a shoulder. “I’m a PJ. I’m good with my hands.”
“Hmm, I just bet you are.” The heavy-lidded look she gave him made his blood pump hotter.
He wanted her under him. Naked. His tongue inside her.
He swung one leg across the chair seat and stood, watching her face as he advanced toward her. If she’d tensed or taken a step back, given any indication at all that she was hesitant or not into this, he’d have stopped.
But she didn’t. She stood her ground, tracking him with those big brown eyes, the mix of hunger and yearning on her face tugging at his heart.
He stopped directly in front of her, forcing her to tip her head back a little to look up at him. He reached out to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear, ran his fingers through its softness. “What do you say, firecracker? Wanna see if I can take the edge off for you?”
Molten desire filled her eyes. “Yes,” she whispered, and reached for him.
Heath groaned as he covered her mouth with his, his fingers sliding deep into her hair to curve around her skull and hold her close. Chloe cupped his face in her hands and plastered her lithe body to his, her lips parting for the stroke of his tongue.
She leaned back against the edge of the table, hands moving to his hair as he lifted her shirt. Small, round breasts met his avid gaze, topped with tight pink nipples. Heath hummed his appreciation and leaned in, licking a path down the center of her chest to the inside curve of her left breast. He nuzzled her, rubbed his bristly cheek against her softness, then closed his mouth over the rigid peak.
Chloe gasped and pulled him closer, wrapping her arms around his head. “Heath…”
He didn’t respond, busy sucking and licking, loving the sound of his name on her lips. He locked one arm around her hips and pulled her pelvis tight to his, rocking the ridge of his erection slow and gentle between her splayed thighs. He wanted her hot and wet for him when he finally touched her there.
She urged him to her other breast and he obliged, rubbing and rocking his erection right where she needed it. With a soft, needy sound she splayed her thighs wider. He palmed one side of her ass and squeezed it, eased his hand around between them to slide inside the leg of her shorts to find her hot center.
She was drenched against his fingers, her heat beckoning him. He lifted his head from her breasts to stare at her face while he grazed her swollen folds with his fingertips. She gasped and stared up at him through pleasure-blurred, heavy-lidded eyes, leaning back to give him more room.
Heath gently nipped at her lower lip, sucked it as he eased a finger inside her then withdrew, spreading her slickness up to circle the hard bud of her clit. Her breathless moan made his whole body tighten. “Can you get off like this?” he said against her parted lips.
“Yes. Don’t stop,” she whispered back, rocking against his hand.
He had no intention of stopping. Instead he shifted his hand, eased two fingers into her, curling them upward to rub her sweet spot while his thumb caressed the swollen knot of her clit.
“Ohh, yeah,” she moaned, nipping his lower lip once before tugging his head downward.
Immediately he sucked her other nipple into his mouth, using his tongue in rhythm with his fingers between her legs. God, she was so soft, so hot. The way she moved, the unabashed way she sought and took her pleasure, was sexy as hell. Her thighs tightened around his hips, her muscles tensing, her breaths turning ragged as she reached the peak.
Heath raised his head and stopped moving his hand.
Those big brown eyes flew open, her lips parting in shock. She made a sound of protest but he cut it off with a deep kiss, twining his tongue with hers. It wasn’t enough to just get her off. He wanted her to remember this, crave the tension and eventual release he could give her.
He kept kissing her, waited until the tension melted from her body before resuming his caresses between her legs. This time her moan was louder, unsteady. She locked her ankles at the small of his back, as if afraid he might try to walk away. Heath teased her now, touching his tongue to hers and then retreating. A sensual dance she responded to with utter abandon.
Rocking against his searching
fingers, she released his head and reached down to shove at her shorts. Heath helped her, dragging the damp cotton down and off her long legs, dropping it on the floor as he sank to his knees before her and gripped the outsides of her thighs.
Chloe leaned back to rest her elbows on the desk, her tight pink nipples peeking out from the locks of hair tumbled over her breasts. Her eyes were dark and hazed with desire, her mouth pink and shiny from his kisses. And between her legs…
Heath gave a soft growl as he stroked his thumbs over the succulent flesh calling to him. Pink and slick, swollen with desire.
Firming his hold on her thighs, he leaned in and settled the flat of his tongue against her. Slow. Soft. Making her feel every single spot he touched as he licked up the length of her to settle his lips around her clit.
She seized his hair with one hand, her weight balanced on her other arm, the muscles in her thighs trembling slightly as she stared down at him. “Heath.”
Yes.
He sucked ever so gently, stroking his tongue along the side of her clit. Chloe mewled in her throat and arched, her body forming a gorgeous, taut line of need.
He let go of one leg and slid two fingers inside her, pressing upward against that spot right behind her pubic bone with firm pressure as he enjoyed her.
Chloe whimpered and clamped her legs around his shoulders, her fingers tightening on his hair sending a sting across his scalp. He kept going, watching her face, paying attention to every little cue her body gave him. And this time when she got close, he didn’t stop.
He slowed.
Her incoherent moan of need wrapped around him, his senses filled with her scent and taste as he took her to heaven. She gave him everything, nothing held back as she came for him, her cries echoing in his ears while she arched against his mouth and clamped around his fingers.
Only when she went limp and pushed his face away did he stop, giving her intimate flesh one last, lingering kiss before easing back on his heels. He was hard as a steel rod in his jeans, aching to unzip his fly and find relief. But it was worth it.
She was worth it.
Chloe licked her lips and pushed up, her breathing still a little ragged as she pushed the tumbled blond strands back from her face. “Wow, I wasn’t…expecting that,” she finally managed.
Ignoring the ache in his dick, Heath pushed to his feet and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to bury his face in her hair. “Good?”
“Amazing.” She nestled her cheek in the hollow between his chest and shoulder, her hands wandering over his back, down to his ass. Then around toward his pulsing erection.
Heath groaned and captured her curious hands. He wanted them on his aching flesh more than anything, but he would wait. He didn’t know what the other guys she’d been with had been like, but he wanted to show her that he was an unselfish lover who didn’t always expect her to reciprocate every time.
Still holding her hands, he eased back a little to look down at her. “Think you can get some sleep now?”
She studied him, as if unsure what to make of him stopping her. “Maybe.”
“Maybe if I was wrapped around you?”
A hint of vulnerability flashed in her eyes at his offer, and a soft smile spread across those tempting lips. “Maybe. I think it’s worth a shot.”
He kissed her soft mouth. “I think so too.”
Leaving her shorts on the floor, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to her bed, where he planned on staying the whole night.
Chapter Fifteen
It had been a few months since she’d last had sex, but this was the first time Chloe had wanted to stay the entire night with a guy. Heath was on his side behind her, tucked up close to her body, one muscular arm wrapped around her waist.
After crawling in beside her he’d shut off the lamp, pulled the covers over them and cuddled into her. He had no idea what that did to her.
Lying here in the near darkness with him, listening to the sound of their quiet breathing, her body sated and warm. The quiet peace she so rarely got to experience. The rare chance to let her shields this far down around another person.
Except she wasn’t the least bit tired after the release he’d given her—without expecting anything in return. And he was rock hard against her butt.
She pulled free of his arm and rolled to face him in the dimness, the tiny amount of light coming from the gap around the blinds on the window allowing her to see his face. The dark stubble on his face added to his rugged appeal, and even though she couldn’t see the color, she could picture how vivid the blue of his eyes was this close up.
“Still can’t sleep?” he murmured, stroking his fingers through her hair.
Ohhh, she liked that. She liked him, with his loyalty, rule following and gruff exterior. “No. And neither can you, like this.” She slid a hand between them to cup the ridge of his erection through his jeans.
Her insides squeezed at the thought of him burying himself inside her. But not tonight—that was too intimate a step to take with him, because he’d already penetrated her defenses more deeply than anyone else had.
Maybe never, because after this op they would go their separate ways. He was different than the others. She wouldn’t be able to walk away unscathed after him, and she needed to mitigate the damage.
He groaned softly and nuzzled her cheek. “You’re making it worse.”
“Am I? Maybe this will help.” She flicked the button of his jeans open and tugged down the zipper so she could slide her hands inside his underwear.
Heath sucked in a breath when she curled her fingers around his warm, rigid flesh, sending a surge of feminine power through her. “You don’t need to do this.” His voice was sandpaper-rough in the quiet.
“I want to.” She wanted to watch his face while she pleasured him, make him come undone while she was in control. And she wanted to escape worrying about Fleur for as long as she could.
Before he could say anything else, she leaned forward to capture his mouth, easing one hand up to cup the back of his head. Heath slid a hand into her hair and used his other arm to bring her closer as he rolled more to his back, giving her room.
Chloe paused to stare down at him in the dimness, aware of a little voice in her mind warning that she was edging into dangerous territory. Without the haze of lust and need clouding her senses, this threatened to be incredibly intimate. She didn’t do intimacy. Intimacy made her vulnerable and she avoided that at all costs to protect herself.
You don’t need to protect yourself from him.
She pushed that tempting voice from her head and kissed him again, determined to just enjoy the here and now. But damn, it was so incredibly hot to have this big, powerful man allowing her to take control this way. The tension in his body, the way his fingers flexed against her scalp and hip told her how much he loved what she was doing, yet he seemed content to let her take the lead, not asserting control or making demands.
Chloe took advantage of it, slowly easing her fist up and down him, varying pressure and speed while she used his groans and body language to figure out what he liked best. Then she used that knowledge to drive him out of his mind, teasing and drawing it out. His hips lifted, pushing his rigid flesh harder into her grip.
She broke the kiss to look down between them, the dark, swollen length of him trapped in her fist. Arousal and power swirled through her. She licked her lips, wanting to taste him. To take him in her mouth and make him insane.
The impulse surprised her. Oral was too intimate. But she needed to give Heath this.
Still stroking him, she leaned down to kiss a path down the side of his neck. He made a rumbling sound and tipped his head back, fingers kneading her scalp. She licked and kissed across his collarbone and down the center of his well-defined chest, gripping the base of his cock.
Heath tensed, his hand curling into her hair when her lips reached his abdomen. “Chloe,” he warned.
The warning only made her want this more, driv
en by her own desire to make him lose control and the thick, hot anticipation pulsing between them. He smelled like soap and male musk, and he was hard to bursting in her hand.
At the first brush of her lips against the sensitive crown, he sucked in a sharp breath and clenched his fingers around her hair. Smiling to herself, Chloe rubbed her check along his length, adding slow, hot kisses on her way up to the tip.
He growled low in his throat when she flicked her tongue across the sensitive underside, his big body drawn taut. And suddenly she didn’t want to tease anymore. She wanted to give this man the same level of pleasure he’d given her. Wanted him to always remember this moment—remember her—long after they parted ways. And they had to part ways. For both their sakes.
She parted her lips and took him into her mouth. Heath moaned and put both hands in her hair, his fingers moving restlessly. A startling, unfamiliar tenderness welled up inside her. She smoothed her free hand up his chest, laid it over his heart as she took him deeper, swirling her tongue around the swollen head of his cock.
His breathing changed almost immediately, the tension in his muscles building as she sucked. His belly and thighs tensed, his fingers gripping her hair, conveying his silent desperation and need. Need that she’d created.
She closed her eyes, focused on the feel of his hands in her hair, the tang of him against her tongue. She wanted to remember this stolen moment too. Wanted to give him so much pleasure, to share this unprecedented level of intimacy with him.
“You’re gonna make me come, firecracker,” he rasped out, the ragged edge to his voice only turning her on more.
The nickname was perfect, and the way he said it was like a caress over her senses. She took him deeper, tightened her grip on the base of him and sucked slower. A little harder.
Heath whispered her name, locked his hands in her hair and pushed his hips upward, his entire body strung taut. He seemed to stop breathing for a second, then he pulsed against her tongue, his guttural groan of release filling her ears.
She stayed with him, waited until he’d relaxed against the bed, all that gorgeous tension melting from his muscles before gently releasing him. She kissed his belly, the center of his chest, craving more of this magical connection between them. Wanting to stamp this memory into his heart forever.